In Repair
by Kuroneko-sama07
Summary: Post-HGSS. Having been beaten, Red leaves Mt. Silver and Green is the first person he visits. The two struggle to figure out where they stand with each other after all these years. One-shot; Originalshipping/Namelessshipping/whatever you want to call it.


**In Repair**

A/N: This started out as a piece for my little post-HG/SS series "Heart of Life" but since that mostly centers around the Johto trio (Lyra, Silver, Ethan) and they are not present here, I just felt like this might be a little out of place. So, I decided this can be like a companion piece of sorts. That said, you definitely don't need to read "Heart of Life" to read this; in fact, the only thing in here that relates to it is that Lyra is the champion and the one that beat Red.

A couple of warnings: some language, and romantic situations involving two males. If you're not cool with that sort of thing, you probably don't want to read this.

* * *

Green was sure that he looked like he'd just seen a ghost because for all intents and purposes, he had. None other than Red, his childhood best friend and former rival, was standing in front of him. In his gym. Wearing that same stupid hat and his ever faithful Pikachu perched on his shoulder. But, what was most telling of all to Green, was his expression. Red said nothing nor cracked even the slightest smile, and those piercing red eyes that seemed to be staring directly into Green's did not betray any emotions that he may or may not have.

"...What are you doing here?" Green finally asked, his tone a mixture of both shock and agitation. He wanted to sound happy and relieved that his friend had finally come down from that damned mountain because he was, but he was also still angry at Red for staying up there so long in the first place. Green wished he could just let it go and stop caring, but even after all these years, he couldn't. He couldn't stop missing his friend, and it irritated him even more to think that Red didn't miss him at all, content in his own little world on top of Mt. Silver.

"I lost," Red answered simply, his voice slightly raspy from disuse. Green's eyes widened in disbelief; _who the hell could have possibly beaten Red? _But, before he could dwell on that thought any longer, one of his trainers called out to him.

"Hey, Green!" Salma shouted, and Green noticed the other trainers were with her. "We're heading out for the night, you wanna come?"

"Nah, go on," he replied, dismissing them with a wave of his hand, not realizing it was already so late. Their chatter was the only sounds that filled the gym as they finished gathering their belongings and left, silence quickly filling the spacious building. Sighing, he turned back to face Red.

"Look, why don't you go on upstairs?" he said, pointing to the staircase behind him that led up to his small apartment. "I need to lock up down here first."

Red nodded and wordlessly made his way up to the apartment. Once he was sure he was alone, Green exhaled deeply, letting out a breath he didn't even know he had been holding, and ran his hand through his hair before going about the routine of closing down the gym for the night.

When he finally entered his apartment, he frowned at the sight before him. Red was already curled up on the sofa and had dozed off without even removing his shoes. Pikachu had found Eevee and the two were in the kitchen area, happily sharing Eevee's food. Luckily for Red, the sound of Green removing his jacket and shoes stirred him from his sleep because if it hadn't, Green had already decided he was going to wake him up by force.

But even though he felt Red's eyes on him, Green ignored them and walked into the small kitchen that was open to the living area. "So, you got beat, huh?" Green asked casually, trying to distract himself by rummaging for some food. "Let me guess... Was it Lyra?"

Red sat up on the sofa and finally decided to take off his shoes. "I never asked her name, and she never told me," he said with a shrug.

"It was her, I'm sure of it. She's the Johto and Kanto champion, you know," Green stated, knowing full well that Red didn't know that. "When she beat me, I actually thought for a second that she might be able to stand a chance against you. Just never thought she'd actually try it."

Awkward silence filled the room then (or at least, it felt awkward to Green) as Red continued to just sit there and Green continued his futile attempt to stay nonchalant as he pulled two packages of instant noodles out of the cabinet. But as the minutes seemed to drag on, Green couldn't take it anymore.

"Why the hell are you really here, Red?" he demanded, practically slamming the instant noodle pack on the counter.

Red looked at him, confused. "I already told you."

"That's not what I mean, and you know it! I trekked up that goddamn mountain multiple times trying to get you to come back down to normal life, and you wouldn't hear any of it! You mean to tell me it was all because you were just waiting to lose?"

Red didn't respond because he didn't know how; he simply looked down at his feet. He had hurt Green, he knew. But the pain had gone both ways; although, he supposed Green coming up the mountain had been his way of trying to make amends. At the time, Red wanted to accept it, he really did. But he couldn't. He hadn't been waiting to lose; his defeat just made him finally realize that there was no point to what he was doing. Being the best pokemon trainer would not only always be fleeting, but it never brought him the satisfaction that he had once thought it would. There was no point to pushing everyone away, as some pain would never ease unless he confronted it head on. That's why he left the mountain. He desperately wanted to convey all of this to Green but found he couldn't even begin to find the words.

Green threw up his hands, exasperated. "Of course you won't answer. Well then, why'd you come _here_? You have a home, you know!" The flash of hurt that showed through Red's eyes at that remark didn't go unnoticed by Green, and he winced inwardly.

"...You're the only person I've spoken to over the last three years," Red said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. "I just wanted to see you."

Green felt like his heart leapt up into his throat, but he immediately pushed that feeling aside. What was that feeling anyway? He couldn't think about it as he stormed over to stand in front of Red, his anger escalating as he felt like he was quickly losing control over this situation and his emotions. His pride wanted him to be angry with Red - hell, it almost wanted him to hate him - but when Red spoke softly like that, a hint of sadness in his usually emotionless voice, Green found his resolve slipping. Worst of all, he couldn't understand why, and that in itself was infuriating.

"Whatever, Red!" he exclaimed, pointing an accusatory finger at him as Red simply looked up at him from his position on the couch. "You're just bored now - now that you've finally been kicked off your pedestal. You couldn't care less about me the entire time you were up there!"

Suddenly, Red jumped up to stand at eye level with Green. "That's not true!" The typically calm boy could feel his own frustration building, but he couldn't blame Green. He wanted to tell Green that while he was up there, he realized he didn't think about anyone as much as he thought about Green. And admittedly, that scared him at first, but he wasn't going to be a coward about it anymore. But Red had never been good with words. He thought maybe he should just try to show it.

Green laid his hands on Red's shoulders, gripping them slightly. "Red, maybe that high altitude messed with your brain, but I haven't seen you or spoken to you since the last time I went up there, which was over a year and a half ago. You can't just show up here and act like nothing ever happened."

"I-I'm sorry," Red replied, his voice quiet and unsteady under Green's fierce gaze. But Red didn't waver as he slowly lifted his arms and wrapped his hands around Green's wrists.

Green thought Red was just trying to get him to release his grip on his shoulders, but Red's hands lingered there instead. His fingers were still cold, Green noticed. He glanced at the hands holding his wrists, feeling like a tension that had suddenly bubbled up between them was impairing his thinking. This wasn't the first time he had felt this way around Red either, he recalled somewhat bitterly, but he could never pin the cause of it.

"Don't screw with me, Red," he said with an irritated sigh, as he loosened his grip on Red's shoulders and started to pull his arms back. "I'm not in the-"

Suddenly, his words were cut short as Red tightened his hold on Green's wrists, stopping him from pulling away, and quickly pulled him even closer than before. Red couldn't explain what happened next; all he knew was that in an instant, he had pressed his lips against Green's.

Almost immediately, Green broke their short-lived kiss, anger and confusion evident on his face as his hands forcefully broke free of Red's and grasped the fabric of Red's shirt, shoving him backwards a few steps but not releasing his hold. "What the hell is wrong with you? Did you not hear what I just said?"

Red inhaled sharply; his heart was pounding, but he was going to stand his ground. He knew these feelings were shared between them; they wouldn't be having this argument if they weren't. Red's stare hardened and he reached up and tightly grasped Green's shirt, mimicking Green's actions but instead of pushing him away, he pulled him closer once more. "I'm not screwing with you," Red said, his voice suddenly strong and unwavering, matching his gaze.

Green swallowed hard as the meaning of Red's words sunk in. Red actually wanted to kiss him? He should be beyond pissed; he should want to punch that look right off of Red's face. But he didn't feel any of that. Instead, his heart was beating so hard he was sure it was audible, and he could feel a deep blush setting in across his face. Every rational thought was telling him to shove Red away, but he wasn't listening. The tension between them was now suffocating, but Green couldn't pull his eyes away from Red. His thoughts were muddled, and all he could think about was how it had felt to have Red's lips on his own for that split-second. And suddenly, all he was aware of was how close their faces seemed to be, and in that instant, any remaining thoughts evaporated and he jerked Red towards him, crashing his lips against his.

And it was as if their feelings for one another that had been kept dormant for all these years erupted inside them. Their lips parted and moved together feverishly, tongues meeting and tasting each other as if they were insatiable. It was raw and forceful as they both seemed to be fighting for dominance, but it felt good. Neither of them had loosened their grip on each other's shirts, as if that was the only thing keeping them both there.

Finally, they broke the kiss, their breathing ragged, but for a moment, neither moved as they stared into each other's eyes, now clouded over with something indiscernible to both of them. Green was the one to break the intense gaze as he let his head fall onto Red's shoulder, exhaling loudly and finally letting go of Red, his hands falling to his side. "Fuck," he said, his voice shaky. "I really hate you."

Red just smiled to himself, knowing those words weren't sincere, and he brought his arms around Green's torso, lightly embracing him. Green gradually lifted his own arms, hesitating for a moment before giving in and placing his arms around Red's waist and just barely resting his hands against his back, as if he was still unsure of being this close to someone he thought was just his childhood friend only a moment ago.

After just a few seconds, Green pulled away and wordlessly made his way back over to the kitchen counter where he had abandoned the instant noodle packs. Red sat back down on the couch, Pikachu running over and jumping into his lap, and watched as Green resumed preparing the food. Just a few minutes later, Green walked over to the couch, holding two small, steaming bowls and handed one of them to Red along with a pair of chopsticks. Red took the bowl, feeling quite delighted that Green had actually prepared dinner for him too, nodding his thanks.

However, before Green joined him in eating, he set his bowl on the coffee table, yanked the throw blanket off the back of the couch, and casually tossed it around Red's shoulders. Red stared at him questioningly, but Green didn't look at him as he sat down beside him, grabbing his bowl, and flipping the TV on with the remote.

Finally, Green spoke. "You're still cold," he said simply in between mouthfuls of noodles.

Red didn't respond but he wore a small smile, which Green noticed out of the corner of his eye. Red tugged the blanket a bit tighter around him with his free hand, and Pikachu certainly seemed to approve as he snuggled up in the excess fabric. Green noticed his Eevee was already curled up in her favorite spot on the rug, drifting off to sleep.

The two ate in comfortable silence; the only sounds were from the TV and the occasional clanking of the chopsticks against their bowls. Green wondered how the hell he could possibly feel so comfortable after what just happened, but he didn't question it. Maybe later they'd talk about what all of this meant for them.

Maybe later Red would confide in Green and tell him his reasons for living on that mountain, but that he missed Green the entire time.

And, maybe later Green would tell Red that he regretted taking advantage of their friendship during their journey years ago, and nothing had been the same while he was gone.

Green was stirred from his thoughts as he suddenly felt Red lean against him, his head laid on Green's shoulder. Green looked down to see that Red had already fallen asleep, his dinner only halfway eaten. Green sighed softly before slowly leaning to place his own bowl on the coffee table and then picking up Red's to place it there as well, careful not to disturb him. Green leaned back into the sofa, Red's limp body slumped even closer against him, and Green gently rested his own head atop Red's.

For now, it didn't matter.

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Red and Green are really a great pairing in my opinion; my heart aches for them sometimes. haha Thanks for reading, please review! :)


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